The Fresno State men’s basketball team (3-5) opened Mountain West play with an 84-62 loss to No. 24 San Diego State on Wednesday, Dec. 4, extending its losing streak to three.

Junior forward Mykell Robinson led the Bulldogs as he recorded his second double-double of the year with a season-high in points (20) and rebounds (10). This came as junior guard Amar Augillard and freshman forward Elijah Price entered foul trouble early in the game and eventually fouled out.

Even with a good start to the game on offense and defense, the Bulldogs could not maintain their momentum as the Aztecs’ size and length proved to be too much. 

50 of the Aztecs’ 84 points came from the paint as they used their size to their advantage. The Bulldogs also gave up 13 offensive rebounds, which allowed for 19 second chance points for the Aztecs. In comparison, the Aztecs only conceded 26 of the Bulldogs’ 62 points in the paint while also recording six blocks.

Head Coach Vance Walberg said even though the Aztecs’ size may have affected the team’s ability to score in the paint, it’s a matter of getting accustomed to it.

“I’m not going to say [the Aztecs’ size] didn’t [have an effect], it’s nice to have a 7-footer and a 6-foot-10 guy down there,” Walberg said. “But I think it’s more of just settling down a little bit more and getting used to it.”

What happened

The first quarter of the game started off with high defensive intensity as both teams struggled to score, with the Bulldogs looking to trap players on defense early.

Eventually, three minutes into the game, the Bulldogs would be first on the scoreboard after a 3-pointer from Robinson off a drive and kick from junior forward Alex Crawford. This was followed by an Aztec layup two minutes later to bring the score 2-3 early in the first quarter. 

As the quarter trudged on, the defense showed to be too aggressive as Augillard entered foul trouble when he earned his third foul of the quarter.

As a result, Augillard, who is the team’s leading scorer, had to sit out the rest of the first half. 

With Augillard out for the remainder of the first quarter, Walberg thought the team did a good job in his absence. After a slow start to the game, he thought the team needed to find another way to win.

“When Amar came out early, I think we were down five, I thought we did a really good job,” Walberg said. “Amar is one of those guys where you hope he hits those shots, and if he hits those shots, he’s going to really help you. If he isn’t, then we got to find another way to win.”

To close the first quarter, after a battle on defense, the Bulldogs finished on a 7-2 run sparked by Crawford to bring the score to 29-24 with the Aztecs in the lead.

Heading into halftime, both teams were shooting poorly from the field. The Bulldogs were 7-of-33 (21.2%) from the field while shooting 2-of-13 (15.4%) from 3-point range. Meanwhile, the Aztecs were slightly better as they were 11-of-30 (36.7%) from the field and 4-9 (44.4%) from three.

To open the second half, Price joined Augillard in foul trouble with three as the Aztecs slowly pulled away with the lead. 

As the quarter went on, the Bulldogs were not showing that defensive intensity seen in the first quarter as players were slow to close out, communicate and rebound. 

Robinson said after strong defense in the first half, they were lacking in the second half which he said is something they need to work on.

“We played pretty good defense throughout the first half, and then in the second half, when we’re not on the side with our coaches on the bench, we kind of get slacking. So that’s something we definitely need to pick up,” Robinson said. 

To close the game, the Bulldogs tried to fight back but the Aztecs’ proved to be too much for the ‘Dogs and they lost 84-62.

What’s next

The Bulldogs look to bounce back against Santa Clara University at the Leavey Center on Saturday, Dec. 7 at 4 p.m.